The zombies in the street gradually noticed the survivors. They gathered in groups, uttering low, hostile snarls as they moved to surround the newcomers. In a blink of an eye, dozens, if not hundreds of zombies formed a massive horde, emanating intense, overwhelming menace.

However, the survivors didn't seem to be daunted by this lesser zombie tide that had gathered. In particular, one of the survivors who was incredibly robust, donning heavy armour and wielding a giant battle shield in one hand while clutching a colossal battle axe in the other, initiated a ferocious charge.

His armour was built from metal, clashing and clattering as he ran. The shield was crafted from an unknown dense metal, appearing immensely hefty. And that colossal battle axe - its body was thick, indicating its significant weight. But in the hands of this muscular survivor, these hefty weapons seemed weightless.

Dashing forward, he plunged violently into the horde of zombies. With a powerful smack of his shield, the first three zombies that sprinted towards him were smashed into pieces. Rotten flesh and dark fluids smudged his shield. The very next second, he swung his battle axe, slicing across the heads of several oncoming zombies.

His battle axe, reinforced by impressive strength, decimated the zombies' skulls like a hot knife through butter, splattering their remnants. Such pure, primeval display of brutality and violence.

"Holy cow!"

Lin Long was astounded.

Could survivors be so ruthless?

Nevertheless, this was just the beginning. The muscular survivor ripped through the horde like cutting through butter, swinging his battle axe relentlessly, smashing one zombie skull after another. His combat skill was evidently high - each swing of his battle axe was meticulously angled at the zombies' heads.

In a mere couple of minutes, the entire horde was obliterated. Heaps of headless zombies collapsed around him.

"Hahaha, refreshing!" the robust survivor roared in delight. He seemed in no hurry nor worry about his resounding voice attracting even more zombies.

At this moment, another survivor wearing a riot gear suit took action. He swiftly drew three throwing knives from his waist and hurled them out with a well-practised flick of his wrist.

Three shimmering figures flashed across the air.

In the foreheads of three zombies, dagger handles protruded, followed by the zombies falling lifelessly. The knife-throwing survivor didn't even pause. He manoeuvred like a dancer as he ambled forward. Concurrently, with every step, he flung out another array of throwing knives, each perfectly aiming for the zombies' foreheads.

One by one, the zombies crumpled onto the pavement. No one knew precisely how many throwing knives he possessed.

The combined force of merely two survivors managed to decimate an entire horde of zombies in an incredibly short amount of time. By the time they approached the remnants of the swarm, there wasn't a single standing zombie left.

They cleared through the horde as if chopping vegetables. The knife-throwing survivor, as elegantly unperturbed as ever, began reclaiming the thrown knives. He wiped clean the fluids off each blade with a piece of cloth and placed them back into his waist sheath.

"Too brutal."

"Too ruthless."

For the first time, Lin Long had witnessed the true strength of survivors. As of now, 'terrifying' would be an adequate description.

This group of survivors formed a small team, and their strength was formidable. And, astoundingly, their direction seemed to be right where Lin Long's zombie unit was situated.

"Holy cow!"

Lin Long panicked.

His current zombie unit, merely a team of average zombies, wouldn't even be enough to clean these survivors' teeth, metaphorically speaking. If got caught in a conflict, or just an encounter, it was a dead-end.

The only solution was to avoid face-to-face contact, especially at this point where the little zombie girl stood atop a car — it was just too conspicuous. If that wasn't conspicuous enough, she even held an axe in her hand. This bizarre scene might prompt the survivors to capture the little zombie girl for thorough investigation.

The ostentatious presentation of the survivors meant the best course of action was to steer clear. Without any hesitation and taking advantage of the survivors’ unawareness of the little zombie girl, under Lin Long’s control, she slid off the car’s roof. She rolled under the car to hide.

Just in time.

Thanks to the petite size of the little girl zombie and the sizable clearance of the SUV, she barely managed to fit underneath.

"Should be safe now, right?"

Hiding beneath the car, it was unlikely that they would spot her. Even if they did, they presumably wouldn't kill an insignificant, harmless little zombie.

Right, hide that hatchet under her body. If the survivors spotted it, there would be trouble.

As the little girl zombie lay there playing dead, Lin Long's consciousness shifted to the muscular zombie inside the residential area.

Lin Long wanted to see how these survivors would counter the howler and what it looked like.

As the consciousness transfer completed, the survivors had already entered the small park inside the community.

"There are six of them in total," Lin Long made a quick calculation.

At this moment, he could hear their conversation.

"Are we certain there's a howler in this residential area?"

"Brother Six, the intel won't be wrong; it's inside."

"The gene fluid extracted from hunting the howler is worth at least a hundred kilograms of rice, or a hundred liters of distilled water."

"Didn't think we'd find a howler on the outskirts of the city, quite a surprise. But it'll certainly be easier to take it down."

Although the conversation was brief and fast, due to their swift progress, it was fleeting as they moved past. Lin Long, however, realized that these short exchanges were filled with vital information.

A howler?

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From the name, it was evident that it was a mutant zombie. While on the topic of extracting gene fluid, what could that possibly be?

The extracted gene fluid's worth of a hundred kilograms of rice, or a hundred liters of distilled water, was definitely not a small amount. In the post-apocalyptic world, food and water were of the utmost importance.

From the ability to obtain such a substantial amount of supplies, the howler's value was estimated to be quite significant. At a deeper level, it implied that a howler typically would not appear close to the city's outskirts - it would be found deeper within the city.

"Holy cow!"

This was already Lin Long's umpteenth exclamation.

There was a howler inside the residential area?

He had audaciously made noise in the residential area to attract zombies. Clearly, this was calling for trouble.

However, he was fortunate the howler wasn’t lured out. Else, the team of zombies he had painstakingly manufactured would, without any doubt, be leveled in an instant.

A narrow escape!

Lin Long wouldn’t even be capable of dealing with a Mammoth zombie presently, let alone a higher-level howler. It was a creature beyond his capability to provoke.

Thankfully, the survivors appeared. If not, Lin Long would have walked right into a minefield.

Upon noticing the survivors proceeding deeper into the residential area, Lin Long immediately withdrew his consciousness from the little girl zombie and transferred it into the muscular zombie.

It was at this time when Lin Long decided to observe how they would deal with the howler and what the howler looked like.

From the perspective of a muscular zombie, he clearly saw six survivors who had just entered. The sight inside the residential compound momentarily stunned them.

"Why are there so many zombie corpses here?"

"These are the marks of bladed weapons."

"The cuts are fresh, they were inflicted not long ago."

"Could it be someone else got here before us?"

Survivors capable of surviving the Apocalypse and turning into gene-evolvers, their abilities were indeed extraordinary. Their swift observations of the surroundings allowed them to formulate conclusions rapidly.

The robust survivor, clad in armour, holding a battle shield in one hand and gripping a battle axe in the other, his eyes filled with caution, stated, “It doesn't look like someone else got here first, there are no signs of significant damage here."

Taking down a howler silently was practically impossible.

The compound was left in a state of integrity.

The aftermath of a battle wouldn't look like this.

Their leader, a stunning woman, possessed a beautifully chiseled face. She wore a slim-fit leather suit that accentuated her perfect physique. Long boots made her legs look even longer. A slender long sword, sheathed, was held in her arms, implying she was a gene-evolver who used swords. Concurrently, slung on her back was a rifle, a chain of bullets belted around her waist.

The sharp contrast of gold against her black leather gave a visual punch.

Entering the city, firearms were indeed potent. Yet, cold weapons proved more useful. Unless absolutely necessary, they wouldn't resort to firearms, to avoid attracting the attention of zombies.

"Monkey, scout ahead."

"Everyone else, ready for combat."

Upon hearing these two commands, the other five members acted accordingly.

The man addressed as Monkey was somewhat thin, yet extremely agile. His movement speed was fast. In the blink of an eye, he had used the balconies to climb up to the roof of a residential building.

In just a brief moment, he had reached the top of a thirty-one story building.

This agility was nothing short of a monkey's. He truly earned his nickname.

The other members all drew their weapons.

Quickly, the Monkey on the upper floor made an odd cry, then started sliding frantically from the building's top.

Boom!

Almost simultaneously, a loud sound echoed.

The rooftop was covered with splattered cement, and a massive figure appeared. Its skin was dark, and it had a faint layer of scales covering it. With a height of about five meters, this creature, somewhat resembling a gorilla, had two elongated and robust arms. It had its eyes locked on the Monkey.

"Roar..."

Like a monstrous roar, it suddenly moved.

Its arm clung onto the wall, and it jumped down. Its arm crushed the wall as it descended, slowing its fall.

By the time it hit the ground, a tremendous gash, akin to a savage scar, had formed along the building's wall.

The deafening sound triggered a response from the zombies in the vicinity. Stimulated by the noise, countless zombies stormed towards the residential compound.

This sight left Lin Long dumbstruck.

This howler was too robust. What was genuinely terrifying was that it could attract countless more zombies. Among the nearby zombies, there were quite a few mutant zombies.

As these zombies swarmed in, how would these survivors handle the situation?

When Lin Long had previously trespassed into the compound, he would never have imagined that a howler was lurking on the rooftop. Clearly, his scout work had been inadequate.

"Quick combat, quick victory!"

The chic female leader issued a command.

No matter how robust they appeared, becoming encircled by numerous zombies wouldn't bode well. The team members, upon receiving the command, got into action.

The first to act was the knife-thrower. He maneuvered his hand, and three throwing knives emerged between his fingers, which he flung swiftly, producing a pattern of shimmering white light.

"Plop!"

The sounds of the three knives embedding were almost simultaneous. The three throwing knives found their mark on the forehead of the howler.

"Roar…"

Attacked, the howler went into a frenzy, brutally pounding the ground with its arms. Its terrifying strength blasted a crater on the surface.

A web of cracks ensnared the ground. In the next instant, it charged.

With its towering stature of five meters, it looked like a running tank.

The husky man, who had been carrying the battle shield, let out a roaring laugh, "I'll withstand one of its attacks, captain, it's up to you next!"

Saying so, he went forward to confront the howler.

During its blind rush, the howler raised its massive arm to hammer the burly man. He roared as well, raising his shield and squatting with bent legs.

Boom!

In the resounding thunderous buzz, the cement beneath the husky man cracked, and he seemed to shrink to half his size. The overwhelming force almost toppled him.

But at that very moment, the cold and beautiful female captain made her move. Her running speed was elusive as lightning. She leaped and landed on the husky man's battle shield, then stepped onto the howler's arm, sprinting on it.

A glittering icy cold beam pulsated. The female captain unsheathed her sword.

Her thin, long sword turned into a beam of light, flashing past the howler's forehead.

From drawing out the sword to sheathing it back, all took just milliseconds.

She once again leaped and descended to the ground.

The rampant howler, now with a blood streak amplifying on its forehead, fell. Half its head detached and slid off.

Boom!

Its massive body collapsed.

The terrifying howler was resolved within a single blow from the cold and beautiful female captain.

This scene widened Lin Long's eyes.

It was ferocious beyond belief.

He couldn't comprehend how she executed her swordplay in time; the battle had concluded so swiftly.

No wonder they dared to venture into the city with just six people, nonchalantly handling the howler.

This kind of strength was their self-confidence.

"Captain, you're incredible."

"Nobody does it better than our Captain."

The team members were soon buttering her up.

The cold and beautiful female captain merely smirked and said, "We won't have long; the zombies will be surrounding this area soon. Speed it up."

Among the team, one man was carrying a box.

He opened it and took out an oversized syringe. The hulking man, carrying the battle axe, moved towards the howler's neck, aimed under its neckline, and struck it forcefully.

The syringe was inserted into the protruding vein at this spot. A blue fluid filled the syringe as the man withdrew.

"Is this the gene fluid?"

Lin Long curiously watched.

Was this gene fluid related to gene-evolvers? Did they need this gene fluid to enhance their abilities?

Without answers, Lin Long could only speculate.

The process of extracting gene fluid was over in less than twenty seconds. The man carefully placed the syringe back into the box, closed it, and secured it on his back.

"Let's go!"

The team moved without any hesitation.

Before the swarm of zombies had fully surrounded the compound, they darted out from the entrance. Moments later, they vanished into the city's alleys.

Some of the incoming zombie horde pursued the team while others stormed the compound.

The horde of zombies, numbering in the tens of thousands, was dense and terrifying.

A considerable number of mutant zombies, such as mammoth zombies and fast zombies, were mixed in among the horde.

If the survivors had been slower, the massive horde of zombies would have surrounded them, making escape nearly impossible, despite their strength.

From the time of the survivors' entry into the compound to their departure, the entire event spanned less than five minutes.

The small compound was entirely under Lin Long's scrutiny during this time.

This brief episode of five minutes left a profound impact on Lin Long.

The peril of this post-apocalyptic world surpassed his initial imagination.

Zombies were brutal enough, yet survivors were equally vicious. With human intellect and gene-evolution, they had transformed into superhuman beings.

"I wonder if it's only a few exceptional survivors who are this powerful, or are they all like this?"

Lin Long felt a shiver running down his spine.